1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink jet recording method wherein a first liquid and an ink composition are deposited onto a recording medium to conduct printing, and a recording apparatus for use in the ink jet recording method.
2. Background Art
An ink jet recording method is a printing method wherein droplets of an ink composition are ejected and deposited onto a recording medium such as paper. This method can realize an image having high resolution and high quality at a high speed with a relatively inexpensive apparatus. In general, the ink composition used in the ink jet recording contains water as a main component and, added thereto, a colorant and a wetting agent such as glycerin added for prevention of clogging and other purposes.
On the other hand, a new ink jet recording method has been recently proposed which comprises applying a polyvalent metal salt solution onto a recording medium and then applying an ink composition containing a dye material having at least one carboxyl group (see, e.g., Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 202328/1993). According to this method, polyvalent metal ions combine with the dye to form an insoluble composite which can provide an image having water resistance and high quality free from color bleeding.
Further, an ink jet recording method has been proposed wherein a color ink containing at least a surfactant or a penetrable solvent and a salt for imparting a penetrating property is used in combination with a black ink which cooperates with the salt to cause thickening or coagulation. This method provides a high-quality color image having high image density and free from color bleeding (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 106735/1994). More specifically, in this method, two liquids, i.e., a first liquid containing a salt and a second liquid of an ink composition, are printed to provide a good image.
Furthermore, other ink jet recording methods wherein two liquids are printed have been proposed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 240557/1991 and No. 240558/1991.